The San Francisco Giants yesterday announced how much it will cost for the privilege of buying a season ticket for one of the 13,700 best seats in the new waterfront ballpark: a one-time fee of $1,500 to $7,500.

Each season ticket will cost an extra $1,620 to $2,835 per year when the 42,000-seat park opens in the year 2000, if all goes as planned. Holders of "charter seat licenses" also will get first dibs on the best parking spots with the cost to be determined.

The Giants will be the first baseball team to sell seat licenses, which have been used in various forms by several football teams, including the Oakland Raiders.

But as Giants managing general partner Peter Magowan and other team officials kept repeating at a new conference yesterday, this will be the first privately financed major league baseball facility since Dodger Stadium opened in Los Angeles' Chavez Ravine in 1962.

Unlike other seat licensing programs, which charge renewal fees, charter seat purchasers will retain their seats forever -- provided they keep buying season tickets. They can also sell, transfer or pass seat rights on to family members. The fees range from $1500 to $7500, depending on the location.

The team hopes to raise $40 million through the licenses, with the money going toward construction of the $255 million stadium. About half the seat licenses will cost between $1,500 and $3,000.

Team officials said they are close to deals with partners to provide the bulk of the financing, estimated at $145 million. Insurance companies, big pension funds and banks are the most likely investors.

The balance of the stadium cost will come from the sale of the park's name to Pacific Bell, stadium advertising and the rights to sell food, beer and extras such as a computer corner where hard-core fans can get statistics and replays.

It will still be possible to buy season tickets without seat licenses, but the best seats in the ballpark will be off-limits. The exclusion is sure to rankle some fans, as it has in other cities.

Larry Baer, Giants vice president and chief operating officer, said the team hopes to maintain its current season ticket mix -- roughly half corporate clients, half individuals.

Season ticket holders will get the first license applications, entitling them to comparable seating, in the next five weeks.

To secure a seat, applications must be returned with a $200 per seat refundable deposit by August 16. The balance can be paid in equal installments over three years, beginning in October 1997.